I am a Tombstone Tourist: someone who loves to wander cemeteries. I find it akin to visiting a museum: an opportunity to enjoy rarely seen sculpture, intricate carvings, and amazing architecture, all in a tranquil outdoor setting. This blog is about cemetery culture, art, history, issues of death, and genealogy - subjects of current relevance. I usually find something that intrigues me and makes me want to dig deeper. Care to join me? Read on...

Friday, October 14, 2011

White Hall and Cassius Marcellus Clay

In
honor of October being the month of Halloween - and other things spooky - all
of my blogs this month will deal with a haunted location and the cemetery that
ties into the story.

~

Kentucky

Historic White Hall

White
Hall was the Kentucky home of Cassius Clay, 19th century emancipationist.Located near
Richmond, Kentucky, the mansion was originally built by Clay’s father, Green
Clay in 1798-99, and named Clermont. When Clay inherited the house in 1861, his
wife, Mary Jane, decided to have the home remodeled in the Italianate
style.She literally had part of
the new house built over the old.The original home had seven rooms.When the new house was finished it boasted 44 rooms, counting closets
and bathrooms.The home was then
renamed White Hall.

Green Clay

Green
Clay was a landowner of magnificent proportions. It was never known how much
acreage he actually owned, but the land made up at least two counties! Green Clay came to Kentucky with Daniel
Boone. He made his fortune as a surveyor, taking 50% of the land surveyed for
his work. On these lands he grew
hemp, raised sheep and owned farms, distilleries, taverns, and a ferry, which
crossed the Kentucky River. He became
one of the wealthiest land owners and largest slaveholders in Kentucky.

William Lloyd Garrison

Cassius Clay

Cassius
Marcellus Clay was born October 19, 1810 at Clermont. Clay attended Yale and it
was there that he heard an anti-slavery speech, given by William Lloyd
Garrison, that set his course for life.
From that point on, Clay rallied that slaves should be freed gradually
by legal means, and slavery abolished.
As a lawyer and dedicated emancipationist, he spoke around the south for
the freedom of slaves. Many times
he was threatened and injured, but Clay always managed to gain the upper
hand. He had the apt reputation of
being a great fighter. Although a Southern land owner, Clay was true to his
principles and freed the slaves he owned in 1844.

Mary Jane Warfield

In 1833, he married Mary Jane Warfield.They were married for 45 years and had ten children. Clay
became a Kentucky state representative from 1835 to 1837. And in 1844, he campaigned for his cousin, Henry
Clay, when he ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Presidency.

In
1845, Clay started and published the True American newspaper, in Lexington. The newspaper championed freedom from slavery.

Clay during the Mexican War

In
1846, even though he was against the annexation of Texas, Clay volunteered to
serve in the Mexican War. When the
war was over, the people of Fayette County, Kentucky presented
him with a Tiffany sword in honor of his bravery and compassion on the
battlefield.

Clay
also served in the General Assembly three times and made an unsuccessful bid
for Governor of Kentucky in 1851.

Abraham Lincoln

In
1860, Clay again campaigned for a presidential candidate. This time, the man he championed,
Abraham Lincoln, won. Clay
was appointed as a major general, and became an envoy between the state of
Kentucky and the President. It
was, in part, due to these reports that Lincoln signed the Emancipation
Proclamation in 1863.

Czar Alexander II

Clay
was also appointed as minister to the court of Czar Alexander II of Russia for
two terms. Because of this, he was able to act as a liaison in the U.S.
purchase of Alaska.

Cassius M. Clay

Dora Richardson Clay

Cassius
Clay returned from Russia to White Hall in 1869. Years of separation, rumors of infidelity, and financial
problems put a toll on his marriage.
In 1878, after more than 45 years of marriage, Cassius and Mary Jane
divorced.

In
1879, Clay married 15-year–old Dora Richardson, bringing national scandal on
the family. The marriage lasted
only four years before they too, were divorced.

White Hall

Clay
continued to live in the mansion until his death on July 22, 1903. He was buried in the Richmond, Kentucky
Cemetery. (Note: AGI blog post on
the Richmond Cemetery was published on October 4th.)

Cassius Clay Memorial

Cassius Clay

Local
papers reported that Clay was so respected by the black community, the streets
of Richmond were lined by local black families, paying their last respects to a
man who had fought for, and in part, helped them win them freedom from slavery.
A local paper reported, “Never was a more striking scene witnessed on the
way to Richmond, where the funeral services were to be held. From every
humble negro cottage along the roadside and at every cross roads, the mothers
and large children carrying those who were too little to walk, the negroes were
lined up to pay their last respects to the man whom they honored as the Abraham
Lincoln of Kentucky.”

White Hall in the 1960's

But
the legacy of White Hall does not end there. When Clay died in 1903, the home
was abandoned. It eventually fell
into ruin and was used by tenant farmers as a barn to store grain, tractors and
house chickens.

Lion in garden

White Hall Gardens

It was 1967 when the Madison County Garden Club suggested that the state consider saving the old mansion and turn it into a state park. In 1968, the deed for the mansion and 13 acres was donated by the Clay heirs to the state of Kentucky. Restoration was undertaken immediately by Kentucky’s First Lady, Beulah Nunn and the Kentucky Mansions Preservation Foundation. The mansion, restored to its former glory, was opened to the public in September of 1971.

Conservatory where
voices are heard

And,
as with many historical homes, White Hall has the reputation of being
haunted. Even tour guides will
tell you that something stirs about the place. Mysterious lights are seen, hushed conversations are heard,
rose perfume drifts through the house at odd moments, pipe smoke can be smelled
at times, ghostly dinner parties still take place in the dining room, complete
with the tinkle of glasses, lively, though undistinguishable conversation, and
the delicious smell of food.

Ghost Walk tours
held at White Hall

Tis
the season for ghosts, but you don’t have long to visit. Guided tours of White Hall are
available from April 1st through October 31st. Tours are given by guides in period
dress. The home is closed to
public tours from November through March. Special
events are held throughout the year. These annual events include the “Scandals
and Ghost Stories” tour in July,
the Ghost Walk tours held
in October, and the Victorian Christmas tours in December.
Reservations are required for these special events.

About Me

I
love wine and will take any chance to sip, savor and share it! Hence, Joy’s JOY
of Wine http://joysjoyofwine.blogspot.com,
a weekly blog about all things wine. I've been in the industry for 15
years as a winery owner, marketing director, speaker, writer, wine judge, and
100% vino girl!

I'm
also a professional freelance magazine and book writer uncorking articles about
wine, food, history, travel, cemetery history and culture. My interest in
cemetery culture led to another great, or maybe I should say
"grave" gig, my weekly blog: A Grave Interest http://agraveinterest.blogspot.com where I get to travel around the country and speak about cemetery topics for genealogy, history and
education conferences.

I suppose you could say that wine is my
passion, and cemeteries are my diversion ... into another world.

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